B&H Photography Podcast

The time-honored saying "A picture is worth a thousand words" can quickly lose meaning in the intricate tangle of a photographer's lifetime archive. That is unless you take a disciplined approach to organizing your photographs from the start. This essential message is woven throughout this week's podcast with the esteemed photojournalist and filmmaker Ed Kashi.
"You need to look at your archive from early on, even before you think you have any critical mass of material," Ed instructs. "This is your memory, this is your history. This is like the essence… Well, for me, this is like the essence of who I am."
Derek's chat with Ed spans the full arc of his career of nearly 50 years—from his early in-depth stories for legendary magazines to his current work on ambitious creative projects through Talking Eyes Media, the non-profit he co-founded with his wife Julie Winokur. 
Their discussion also covers the many implications of the digital revolution, being accountable for the pictures you make, viewing social media as an opportunity to be your own publisher, Ed's natural reflex to anticipate and react to situations, plus his affinity for capturing "Abandoned Moments," where he's not fully in control of the action in front of his lens. 
Yet, while photos are vital building blocks, story reigns supreme. "Here's how I want to end," Ed concludes. "Joan Didion has a great quote, 'We humans live for stories.' Simply put, and so true and so wise. And I feel that I live for stories, whether I'm telling them or whether I'm absorbing them."
If you've enjoyed this podcast, please follow us @bhpodcastnetwork and be on the lookout for more inspiring conversations in our new format.
Guest: Ed Kashi
Episode Timeline:
0:00: Ed Kashi: Anticipate & React
3:16: Ed's reflexes to anticipate and react and not be in control of situations he documents.
5:45: Ed's approach to social media: He can be his own publisher.
9:45: Your archive is the essence of who you are as a photographer.
12:31: Ed's switch to digital photography in 2002. 
16:30: An early ambition to be a writer rather than a photographer. 
21:33: Ed's Aging in America project and his entry to video.
26:58: Collaborating with his wife Julie Winokur on multimedia projects & knowing how to work together with a partner. 
33:08: The importance of a support staff to running his business, plus his Talking Eyes Media nonprofit.
39:04: Finding new ways to fund ambitious creative projects and distribute through major media outlets.
45:38: Ed's theory of Abandoned Moments & capturing the in-between moments not in control.
56:32: Being accountable for the pictures you make & not reinforcing stereotypes.
1:05:14: Ed's most difficult story in Iraq & his first panic attack
Guest Bio: Ed Kashi believes in the power of still images to change people's minds. This renowned photojournalist, filmmaker, speaker, and educator has been making images and telling stories for 45 years. As a member of VII Photo, Kashi has been recognized for his complex imagery and its compelling rendering of the human condition. His editorial assignments and personal projects have generated fourteen books and several influential short films, and his award-winning images have been published and exhibited worldwide.
Dedicated to the social and political issues that define our times, Ed's restless creativity has continually placed him at the forefront of new approaches to visual storytelling. His embrace of technology has spawned unique ways to combine photography and filmmaking—from creative social media projects to immersive multimedia projections, and beyond. In 2002, Ed, together with his wife, the writer + filmmaker Julie Winokur, founded Talking Eyes Media as a non-profit company focused on producing short films, exhibitions, books, and multimedia pieces that explore significant social issues.
Stay Connected:
Ed Kashi Website: https://www.edkashi.com
Talking Eyes Media Website: https://talkingeyesmedia.org
The Enigma Room Website: https://www.enigmaroom.me
Ed Kashi Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/edkashi
Talking Eyes Media Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/talkingeyesmedia/
B&H Podcast Network Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bhpodcastnetwork/
B&H Podcast Network Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@BHPodcastNetwork
 
Host: Derek Fahsbender
Senior Creative Producer: Jill Waterman
Technical Producer/Video Editor: Peter Maziarz
Executive Producer: Dana Glidden

New York City is often considered the center of the universe, especially for photographers and other creative types. Leaving the Big Apple after you've established yourself there can mean "saying goodbye to these chapters of a previous life," according to today's guest.
Derek's chat with Sony Artisan Nancy Borowick on this week's podcast is all about looking beyond the environment that launched her professional life and making pivots to balance a successful career with the responsibilities of a growing family, amid other life changes.
 As Derek aptly notes, "Pivot means more adapt than it means change. And you can turn out a different end product and it's coming from a different place. But at the end of the day, you're still building the same connections."
Nancy and Derek also discuss the value of mentorship, the essential role of human connections, challenges to building community as an outsider in a new setting, and Nancy's recent expansion into family & event photography.
Reflecting on the jumble of life and career decisions she's made to this point, Nancy admits, "It calms me to be able to look at all the pivots and all the different chances that I've taken and seen that it's all kind of worked out in the end in some capacity. Like, when you're just starting out, and I was saying yes to everything that came my way because, one, I needed to make money, but also, someone wants to hire me to take photographs?!?"
"I thought it was going to be a hobby," she adds. "I didn't realize I could make it into a career. And, little by little this door opened this thing, and this door opened this other thing, and I left New York, and I said goodbye to a lot, but then new doors opened."
If you've enjoyed this podcast, please follow us @bhpodcastnetwork and be on the lookout for more inspiring conversations in our new format.
Guest: Nancy Borowick
Episode Timeline: 
0:00: Nancy Borowick: Photography Mentors & Career Pivots.
1:36: Derek stalks Nancy enroute to the recording session.
6:12: Leaving New York for the US Virgin Islands.
10:45: Balancing a career with kids and family.
13:08: Mixing photojournalism & local news stories with family & event shoots.
15:14: Making human connections & being a part of other people's joy.
18:10: Connecting to the local community as an outsider 
21:35: Building Nancy's new business: Love City Photos 
29:55: A pivot means adapt more than it means change 
35:34: The photographic curse behind some of Derek's portraits.
38:40: Nancy's portrait assignment from a B&H Event Space photo walk.
42:04: Photography mentorship & finding the person you want to be. 
50:28: The importance of making time for yourself.
58:46: Nancy's advice for finding a mentor.
 
Guest Bio: Nancy Borowick is an internationally renowned photographer, author, teacher and speaker, bringing her personal story to universities, hospitals, oncology units and community groups world across the globe. 
Nancy is a Sony Artisan of Imagery and proud member of the Sony Alpha Female community. She is a graduate of the International Center of Photography and has exhibited her work in more than 100 cities.  Her photos have appeared in newspapers and magazines worldwide, and she has worked regularly with the New York Times since 2013. These intimate stories of people and places have garnered major accolades and awards, including World Press Photo, Pictures of the Year International, and The Arnold Newman Prize. In 2019, Nancy was invited to become a Kickstarter Thought Leader. Most recently, Nancy received the Humanitarian Award from the organization Women That Soar for her photography and recent monograph, The Family Imprint.
Nancy currently resides on the island of St. John, USVI with her husband, and two sons.
 
Stay Connected:
Nancy Borowick Website: https://www.nancyborowick.com/
Nancy Borowick Love City Website: https://www.lovecityphoto.com/
Nancy Borowick Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nancyborowick
B&H Podcast Network Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bhpodcastnetwork/
B&H Podcast Network Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@BHPodcastNetwork
 
Host: Derek Fahsbender
Senior Creative Producer: Jill Waterman

Technical Producer/Video Editor: Peter Maziarz

Executive Producer: Dana Glidden

Austin Bell shoots basketball courts—thousands of them—mostly from above. Using a drone and a flat-lay approach, he's documented more than 6,500 courts across 28 countries, including every single example to be found across Hong Kong's variegated landscape. In 2024, Bell's self-described "nonchalant obsession" became Shooting Hoops, an exhibition and monograph that maps the city through color, geometry, and concrete.
In today's show—our first full video release in our in-house studio—Austin describes the complex logistics involved in finding and photographing every last court, while also elaborating on his ingenious system for organizing all the data in a color-coded map that he can store on his phone.
We also touch on AI, as Austin shares details about the machine-powered analytics that helped him assemble all his New York-area courts into a magnificent rainbow-colored grid. Austin's latest undertaking is to update his collection of "concrete crop circles" across the five boroughs, with a plan to feature the top 10 courts from each borough on a deck of cards.
Austin's ultimate goal with this project is to "show people things that they're not going to get to see otherwise. "I think we all struggle with that need to make something uniquely ours as things get easier to produce," he notes. "But I think that drives us forward as artists. Part of creating is not mimicking. You want to go out there and actually create something that is yours."
If you've enjoyed this podcast, please follow us @bhpodcastnetwork and be on the lookout for more inspiring conversations in our new format.
Guest: Austin Bell
Episode Timeline:
 
 
1:02: Austin's Shooting Hoops t-shirt & being a basketball fan.
 
3:32: The flat lay approach to shooting with drones … plus crash stories!
 
9:06: Shoot logistics and collecting data in a spread sheet.
 
15:40: Creative aspects to photographing basketball courts.
 
20:55: Photo editing for Austin's Shooting Hoops book.
 
24:16: A tour of Hong Kong through its basketball courts.
 
29:38: Using AI to help with the edit.
 
33:51: People's personal relationships with their neighborhood courts.
 
43:10: Revisiting courts and keeping track of their current state.
 
49:07: The need to create something unique as things get easier to produce.
 
54:40: Austin's approach to shooting hoops as a very nonchalant obsession.
 
59:26: What's next for Austin and his Shooting Hoops project?
 
 
 
Guest Bio: Austin Bell is a peripatetic photographer, originally from North Carolina. His work centers around large-scale collections, frequently aerial, of landscapes and architecture that showcase novel perspectives. He seeks to present subjects and places in ways that delight and transport the viewer. In addition to capturing more than 6,600 basketball courts in 28 countries and 19 states—including the 2,549 Hong Kong courts featured in his 2024 book Shooting Hoops—Bell also photographs other types of aerial landscapes and birds. Past publications include a book of bird photography, Birding: The First Two Years, and a non-fiction book, Horse Show Boyfriend, a travelogue and explainer about the world of hunter-jumper horses.
 
 
 
Stay Connected:
Austin Bell Website: https://bellaustin.com
Austin Bell Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/austinwonderland
B&H Podcast Network Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bhpodcastnetwork/
B&H Podcast Network Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@BHPodcastNetwork

After an extended hiatus, we're stoked to announce that the B&H Photography Podcast is back online with an impressive visual identity and a vibrant new studio space for hosting in-person guests.
In this Welcome Back prequel, host Derek Fahsbender elaborates on some of the moving parts involved in our transition from audio-only to a fully-fledged video podcast. He also introduces the show's new technical producer Peter Maziarz, who adds his insights from behind the mixing board.
As Derek notes, our recent process in rebooting the podcast is not so different than "a typical day in the life of a photographer—figuring things out."
He also shares a deeply personal perspective on his evolution as a photographer by asking, "How has it made me a better person? How does life imitate art and art imitate life? And the two interconnect in a way that as I'm getting better as a photographer, I'm hopefully getting better as a person, and seeing the world in a different light."
Take a tour of our new studio space in the photos posted here. And for regular updates and inspiring chats in our new format, follow us on social media @bhpodcastnetwork.
Guest: Derek Fahsbender & Peter Maziarz
Episode Timeline:
 
 
0:19: Taking the leap from audio-only to a video podcast.
 
1:40: Challenges to building a rapport with guests without visual cues.
 
3:10: Updating the vision of the original B&H podcast pioneers.
 
5:42: The ultimate vibe check with our upcoming line-up of guests
 
9:13: Teasing our first podcast guest—Austin Bell and his Shooting Hoops project.
 
10:44: How Derek got involved with the podcast & introducing Peter Maziarz.
 
13:01: Derek's take on a new frontier and a collaborative vision.  
 
15:09: A show with the support of B&H as an industry leader.
 
16:09: Derek's parting words: "Just go out there, do it, figure it out as you go."
 
Guest Bios:
 
Derek Fahsbender is a photographer based in New York City. As Senior Producer for the B&H Event Space team, Derek works with a wide range of tech brands, as well as freelance creatives, and brand ambassadors, to develop content for educational programming. He also serves as host/moderator for the B&H Event Space's live events. Derek is an official Fujifilm Creator, Logitech Ambassador, Oberwerth Ambassador, plus host of the B&H Photography Podcast, part of the B&H Podcast Network.
Peter Maziarz is the producer of the B&H Podcast Network and the B&H Photography Podcast. He designed the network's brand new studio and has spent five years at B&H, following several years in video production. He's building the show he'd want to listen to: real conversations with industry leading creatives.
Stay Connected:
 
B&H Podcast Network Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bhpodcastnetwork/
B&H Podcast Network Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@BHPodcastNetwork

The B&H Photography Podcast is getting a facelift. After more than a decade of audio-driven chats featuring many of the photo world's most inspiring voices, we're transitioning to a video podcast—in our own dedicated studio!
In this short farewell to audio, podcast host Derek Fahsbender reflects on inheriting the mic, pays tribute to the show's founders and colleagues who've helped shape the show, and elaborates on all he's learned from guests who've dedicated their lives to the craft.
Most important, we offer you, our listeners, heartfelt thanks for your collective role in making our show the success it is today, and we encourage you to follow along as we embark on our next chapter. Join us @bhpodcastnetwork for the same inspiring conversations in our new format.
For more information on our guests and the gear they use, see:
www.bhphotovideo.com/explora/podcasts
Guest: Derek Fahsbender
Episode Timeline:
 
0:35: Derek's early hesitation to step up to the podcast mic.
1:27: Paying tribute to the podcast's founders John, Allan & Jason.
2:55: What Derek learned from a recent family trip to Japan.
3:50: Inspiring thoughts from our episode with Brandon Stanton of Humans of New York.
4:46: The podcast's here and now and looking ahead to the future.
Guest Bio: Derek Fahsbender is a photographer based in New York City. As Senior Producer for the B&H Event Space team, Derek works with a wide range of tech brands, as well as freelance creatives, and brand ambassadors, to develop content for educational programming. He also serves as host/moderator for the B&H Event Space's live events. Derek is an official Fujifilm Creator, Logitech Ambassador, Oberwerth Ambassador, plus host of the B&H Photography Podcast, part of the B&H Podcast Network. 
Stay Connected:
Derek Fahsbender Website: https://www.likeamacheen.com​
Derek Fahsbender Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/likeamacheen
B&H Podcast Network Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bhpodcastnetwork/
B&H Podcast Network Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@BHPodcastNetwork